Social finance uses standard financial tools and instruments to leverage the economic, social and environmental value created by organizations in the non-profit and for-profit sectors or in the hybrid space between them. These organizations are usually mission-driven and seek to maximize all three forms of value. Increasingly main-stream investors are seeking opportunities to invest in organizations that generate ‘blended value’ also known as ‘double’ and even ‘triple’ bottom line investing. To be successful such investment requires a suite of financial tools, a cadre of new financial intermediaries, and a set of measurement metrics that capture the impact of the blended value return. These three key ingredients form the core of social finance. The Carleton Centre for Community Innovation provides tools and instruments essential for the implementation and measurement of social finance.

For those who are more visual, here’s a fun video that does a great job explaining Impact Investing: